March 9, 2012For immediate release:

Anti-human trafficking groups nation-wide are speaking out against a Halifax radio-station contest where the prize is a “mail order bride”.

Q104 FM’s contest is called “The Male Is In The Czech.” The winner will be flown to Prague to date “a bevy of beauties”.

The anti-trafficking coalition includes groups from across the country. In a joint statement they say: “The contest sends a message of inherent disregard for human dignity – it helps create the atmosphere in which human trafficking, exploitation and slavery can thrive.”

“The idea that a human being could be a "prize", that you can “win” one, takes us back two hundred years to an era we hoped we had closed in Canada,” says Christina Harrison Baird, Chair of PACT-Ottawa (Persons Against the Crime of Trafficking in Humans).

“People are not for sale, trade or auction, period,” says Jacqueline Linder of the Chrysalis Network. “While it was likely meant in the spirit of fun, the message it sends undermines the work of law enforcement and many, many people across this country trying to create a better, safer world.”

The coalition says the idea that a person could be viewed as a “prize” or a “thing” is to completely strip them of their dignity and worth as a human; reducing them to just that – a thing, or an object.

It further states this is an opportunity for all Canadians to think twice about systems that exploit vulnerabilities, including online marriage companies or “mail-order brides.”

Law enforcement officials estimate approximately two thousand international victims are trafficked into and through Canada each year. Statistics for domestically trafficked victims are currently unknown.

In addition to ongoing investigations, there were at least 46 human trafficking cases prosecuted by courts as of late February 2011. These cases involved 68 accused trafficking offenders and 80 victims.

These cases likely represent only a fraction of the actual number of human trafficking cases. Due to threats, violence or coercion, most trafficking victims are unable to come forward. In addition, these statistics do not include a growing number of domestic trafficking cases involving Canadian women and girls.

Trafficked persons require a range of support services, including healthcare and counseling, housing, income or employment support, legal aid and translation services. Most of these social services fall within provincial responsibility. While some provincial governments like Alberta and B.C. have established lead agencies for trafficked persons to access such services, others have yet to take such action.